Mushroom Wars 2 is categorized as a real-time strategy game, and that description is accurate to some extent. Elements of strategy are present, but the game is a lot more puzzle-based than something like StarCraft. It’s also got a more simplistic design, which isn’t a bad thing, but in this case, the game is a lot more repetitive because of it.

The goal is to take over every enemy structure by overwhelming said structures with your shroom platoon. Possessing a building gives you the option to convert it into one of a few different utilities. Houses generate more mushroom troopers, towers shoot at marching foes, and armories increase the power of your spore saboteurs. Sending soldiers from architecture to architecture is necessary for map domination, but reserving troops to an edifice critical to your military’s survival. A territory housing a large amount of units is not only more difficult to lose, it can also be upgraded to perform its function more effectively.

It’s gratifying to snowball into victory after conquering a majority of the map, yet that sense of accomplishment is fleeting. Gaining map advantage often guarantees a win, and that gets boring. At least campaign mode presents numerous difficulty options to make things less of a breeze. The enemy ai mushrooms in aggression with each subsequent difficulty, forcing you to manage your forces with more haste.

Single player offers over a hundred levels of yeast-dispersal action, rewarding players with a story told in a slideshow-esque format. The game is cute, but generically so. While the fungi variations of barbarians and necromancers are all fun guys, the visual style doesn’t stand out. The identical levels are accompanied by a soundtrack composed of the same grating stock library of kazoo noises.

Multiplayer mode can be played locally or online with up to four players. Competitive play sees you choosing between a handful of different commanders, each with their own abilities that can hamper the infantry of others while bolstering your own. Multiplayer is frantic to the point where this RTS becomes more of a party game, which isn’t a negative. The online mode is fairly active too, which is a pleasant surprise.

The gameplay of Mushroom Wars 2 is capable, there just isn’t a lot to it. Despite the game’s one-hundred plus levels, there’s not enough deviation to justify sitting down with it for an extended period of time. It’s more suited for playing a level or two while killing a brief amount of time. And that’s okay, the game was designed for mobile platforms after all. For fifteen dollars, however, you can get a much more fulfilling experience.

There currently aren’t too many real-time strategy games on the Switch, but I’m not sure Mushroom Wars 2 can satisfy the demand. With its monotonous gameplay and dull presentation, there isn’t much else to see after the first few conquests. It’s a decent game, but it’s not something I have the motivation to put a lot of time into.